Seal



May l2, 1925.

E. TYDEN SEAL Ellfed lax 2, 19225 Patented May 12, 1925i UNITED STATES ritiri.V TYDEN, or nvANs'roN, iLLiNoIs.

y SEAL.

Application yfiled May 2,

To all whom t may concern:

Be it known that l, EMIL TYDEN, a citizen of the United States, and residentfof Ev anston, in the county of Cook and State of Illinois, have invented certain new and useful Improvements inSeals, of which therfollowing is specification, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, forming a part thereof.

The punpose of this invention is to provide an improved and very simple .form Yof sealadapted for sealing cars, doors and the like, by a looped member engaged with ,staf ples or the like.V It consists in the elements and features of construction` shown and describedv as lindicated in the claims.`

In thedrawingszl Figure l is a plan view of a seal embody ing this invention in the form in` which itis furnished for use and before it has lbeen used. l y

Figure 2 shows the seal in closed and sealing position,-that is, ywith its previously free end engaged with the body, completing and closing the sealing loop.

Figure V3 is an enlarged plan viewvof the body and loop ends engaged therewith at sealed position. K

Figure 4 is a section at the line, ll-ll, on

Figure 3.

Figure -5 is a section. at the line, 5-5, on Figure 3. Figure 6 is a plan. view of Va sheet metal blankv upon which the body of the seal 1s formed by stamping. Y

' F'gureT is a detail side ,elevation of a .portion of the loop member or rod of which itis formed, having certain V-shaped notches forldetermining the folding of the said rod tok formaliook in its sealed position and insuring its breaking uponl the straightening of the hook. Y' f, y

The construction shown in the drawings comprises a body member, A, andQa-loop member, B.. The body member, A, is desirablygand l as shown,formed` of .a sheet nieta-l blankshown in Figure- ,6 which iscut ,froml the sheet `metal with four wings'projecting from four sides-'of its central portion and adapted to be folded up, at. the four sides kto enclosean open spacel and constitute an open-topped boxl or cup'witlr a web bottom. Two of the opposite sides., A1, A1liave each an aperture, a1,said-` apertures being,- ,when the sides are folded up, laligned with each other. :in @redire-@tien transverse t@ the body 1923. seran No. 636,075.

member. The 'other two sides, A2, A2, have v apertures a?, 0,?, which when the sides, A2, A2, are folded up are similarly aligned with eachother in a direction transverse to the direction of alignment of the apertures, al, a1.` The apertures, a1, a1, areiound to admit loosely and approximately to fit the rod of which the loop member, B, is formed, The apertures, a2, are elongated parallel to the alignment of the apertures, a1, afor admitting through them certain flattened and widened portions ofL the rod forming the loop, B, said flattened portions having no specific function with respect to the sealing, but being designed to receive identifying markings. The flattened portion, bat the end being .desirably marked to .identify vthe ownership of the car or other receptacle which is sealed,and the flattened portion, by', being` formed at a portion of the loop rod which will not be detached yin breaking they seal and designed' Yfor `receiving a serial number by which the seal may bev identified. The loop member, B, desirablyV being a iod or wire, has one'end portion permanently ysecured to the body member, A, said securement being effected by inserting said end portion through ther aligned apertures, a1, @1,-which apertures are desirably, as shown, at a distance above the bottoni web of the `,body member substantially equal 4to the diameter orthickness of the loop 'rodJ B,-

and sinking the portioir B1", ofthe rod between the two side walls, A1, A1, of the body member Vonto the bottom web of the ,bodyk member, forming small shoulders, 1", 510,

tightly jammed between the twowalls, A1, A1, and simultaneously by the saine stamping operation which is performed with suitsok Vvable dies,l 'flattening and expanding laterally the rod just outside of each of said walls,

A1, A1, as seen at 1, b1. The side walls, A2,A2-7 are folded up of greater width than the other side walls, A1, A1, the excess width lbeing folded outward, forming flanges, A3, A3, as seen most clearly in Figure l. yThe purpose of these fiangesfwill hereinafter appear.

VThe free end portion B30 of the loop rod beyond the loop, B, and beyond the number bearingflattened areas, By, .is de'sirably bent or folded at b4, to `extend, nearly at .right 4angles tothe immediately' preceding portion,

land thereby nearly at right angles to .the initial portion, B1, and so asvto point toward `the .elongated apertures, a2, a2, through which said end is to be inserted, the curve ot' the loop, B, being,- such that upon applying pressure to close the two sides ot the loop together, the flattened end, 22X, will normally be thrust directly through the two apertures, a2, a2, and the portion ofthe loop rod adjacent to the bend, b4, extends across above the portion, B10, of the initial or secured end ot the rod, as seen in Figure 5. At a point on the rod which will be outside the body member when the rod has been thrust through the apertures, (t2, a2, to bring the bend, bt, up against the edge of the flange, A3, ot the side wall first entered by the flattened end o't the rod, the rod is by construction provided with two if-shaped notches, If', on the upper or outer side. rl.`he purpose et these notches is, lirst to Jfacilitate the folding' of the portion of the rod which projects beyond the body back over the adjacent side wall, A2, and its Hangs, to form a hook B21, projecting back across the open side ot the box constituting' the body member, as seen in Figures 2, n3 and il; and secondly to insure a certain limit of width of the hook,-that is, to insure that thc `fold B32, to forni the hook shall be at a predetermined point or place; because the wire will certainly told at the points where it is weakened by these \f'shapednotches. A third purpose, and the chietf purpose, oiC the V-shaped notches is to insure the breaking' of the rod at the bend `ot the hook it and whenever it is straightened, as it must be in order to open the seal tor detaching it from the sealed receptacle.

Upon consideration of the structure shown, it will be understood that when the detachment ol the seal trom the sealed obliect is authorized, such detachment will be ei'ected by straightening' the hook, resulting,v in breaking' otf the end at the notches, 3, h3, and withdrawing' the end thus mutilated from the body member, and thereby opening the loop so that it can be disengaged from staples or whatever it may be engaged with in sealing. It will also be understood thatL it is designed that any unauthorized attempt to tamper with the seal will be disclosed by the tact that such tampering will breakthe hook at the notches, b3. It will be recognized also that the opening,r of the loop tor detaching' the seal can be effected without breaking` the hook, only it some other means of disengagging' one end or the other of the .loop rod from the body member can be found; and it will be understood that the 'purpose of sinking; the secured end of the loop rod between the sides, A2, A2,'of a body member and the purpose of flattening and broadening' the rod at b1, 721, outside of said sides, is to make it impossible to detach the secured end of the rod from the body member without breaking the roch-as may easily be done at the llattened portion, b1, on

the side of the body toward the loop,-or by severance of the walls, A1, A1, from the apertures, al, to the edges ot the walls, will not make it possible to detach or withdraw the secured end because that end-is crossed by the other end portion ot the rod, as seen in Figure 5; and even the opening of adequate gaps from the aperture, al, to the upper edges of the walls, A1, A1, would not permit the lifting' out of the attached end ot the rod. It will be understood, upon consideration further, that by reason ot the flanges, A3, A3, on the side walls, A2, A2, it will be impossible to make openings in these side walls for lifting' out the rod which is insorted through these walls, because for such openings it will be necessary, first, to cut through the side walls above the apertures, ft2, including' the flange, and it will then be necessary to fold the severed edges laterally to create a gap as wide as the diameter of the rod; but it would be impossible thus to fold laterally the angular lip which would be produced by the slit or cut; and it would be lirst necessary to straighten up the flange before making the cut or attemptingthe lateral folding,r to open the gap for removal or the rod; and by reason ot the predetermination or" the width oit' the hook which is eiected by the spacing' ot the V-shape'l notches, 723, b3, so that that width is less than the width of the flange, A3, it will be impossible to straighten up the flange, A2, be- 'tore opening' the hook, and impossibleto open the hook without breaking.

By the various expedients and features ot construction above described, the possibility of tamperingwith the seal so to open it without such mutilation oi one or the other of its members as to make obvious at a glance that it has been tampered with, is etlectually prevented. Y

1. A seal comprising a body member having walls encompassing an open space, said walls having two pairs ot opposed apertures in two planes transverse to each other and to the plane in which said walls encompass the open space; in combination 'with a flexible prod, one end of which is inserted through one pair of said apertures across said open space and locked in said apertures by distortion of the Vrod at opposite sides of the two walls respectively, the other end of the rod being; adapted for insertion through the other pair of apertures, and at a point far enough back from the end to forni a hook.

'being' weakened so as to insure breaking by being t'olded into hook form and subsequently straightened.

2. In the construction defined in claim 1,

Vlocking it in the first mentionedV pair of apertures consisting in sinking it to the bottom betweenthe walls through which it extends. v

3. In the constructiondefined in claimy l,

foregoing, theV rod being Aby construction bent in an vopen loop between its ends, the unattached end portion being 'furtherl bent crosswise of the loop to point the end nearly at right angles to the Vsecured end portion and in a position for entering the second pair of apertures by flexing the loop to reduce its spread. i

4. In the construction defined in claim l, foregoing, the distortion of the rod for locking it in the first mentioned pair of apertures comprising flattening and laterally panding the rod at the outer sides of the i two outerA walls through which it extends.

In the construction defined in claim l, foregoing, the wall through which4 the final end of the rod is inserted and over which it is flexed inhook form being flanged. rendering it at the location of. the aperture, angular in cross section in a plane transverse to the secured Vend portion of the rod; whereby severance and opening-of the wall for release of the hooked endof the rod without obvious mutilation of the body member is prevented. I y

, 6. In the construction defined in claim l, foregoing, the body being in cup form comprising a bottom web, the initially secured end portion of the rod being sunken toward the bottom web between the walls through which it extends, forming stopshoulders at the inner sides of said' ,walls preventing longitudinal withdrawal, and the other pair of apertures being positioned for locating the finally inserted end above the initially secured end portion; whereby the finally engaged hook end portion prevents lateral re# moval of the initially secured end portion.

7. In theconstruction defined in claim l, foregoing,`the weakening of they rod at the point for bending it to hook over the other body being by V-shaped notches on the side of the rod toward which the end is to be folded to form a hook.` Y

8. .In the construction defined in claim l, foregoing, one of the walls through which the final end of the rod is inserted and over which it is flexed in hook form being flanged, rendering itat the locationkof the apertures angular in cross-section in a plane transverse to the first secured end portion of 4the rod, the weakening ofthe rod at the point for bending the hook over said wall being by means of two V-shaped notches on the side toward which the rend is to; be folded toV form the hook, saidy notches being spaced apart a distance enough less than the width of the flange which renders the wall angular in cross-section, to insure thereby the width ofthe hook gap being less than the width of the flange, for defeating the unfolding of the flange into ythe hook.

9. In the construction defined in claim 1, foregoing, the wall through which the final end of the rod is inserted and over which it isV flexed .in hook form being formed to extend from the aperture to vthe free edge in more than one plane transverse to the inserted'rod, whereby folding of theapertured wall after slitting it from the Vaperture to the edge to open a path for lateral removal v of the rod is prevented. n

In testimony whereof,I havehereunto set my `hand at Chicago, Illinois, this 30th day of April, 1923.

EMIL TYDEN. 

